1.(1) This Act may be cited as the Medical
Termination of Pregnancy Act 1995.

(2) This Act
applies to treatment for the termination of pregnancy by medication, surgical
procedures or other means.

2.(1) In this Act -

(a)"approved institution" means any
institution approved by the Minister for the purposes of this Act;

(b)"authorised medical practitioner"
means any person registered as a duly qualified medical practitioner under the
Medical Practitioners Act 1991 and, being either a specialist in obstetrics and
gynaecology with such experience as may be prescribed or a medical practitioner
authorised in accordance with regulations made under section 16 to perform
medical terminations of pregnancies;

(c)"foetus" includes an embryo;

(d)"institution" means -

(i)a hospital;

(ii) a clinic;

(iii) a nursing
home, including a maternity home;

(iv) any other
facility where arrangements for the treatment of termination of pregnancy
exist;

(f)"nurse" means any person registered
as a duly qualified nurse under any law, for the time being in operation in Guyana,
relating to the registration of nurses;

(g)"person of unsound mind" means an
idiot or a person who is suffering from mental derangement;

(h)"pregnancy" means an intra-uterine
human pregnancy where the foetus is viable;

(i)"prescribed" means prescribed by
regulations made by the Minister;

(j)"termination of pregnancy" means
termination of human pregnancy with an intention other than to produce a live
birth.

(2) For the
purposes of this Act, the duration of a pregnancy shall be determined -

(a)by calculating from the first day of the last
normal menstruation of the pregnant woman and ending on the last day of the
relevant week; and

(b)by clinical examination.

3.(1) Notwithstanding sections 78, 79, 80 and 99
of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, the treatment for the termination of a
pregnancy shall be lawful if administered in accordance with the provisions of
this Act.

(2) For the
removal of doubt it is hereby declared that nothing in this Act shall be
construed as affecting the provisions of section 99 of the Criminal Law
(Offences) Act relating to the offence of child destruction.

Counselling

4.The Minister shall make regulations for pre-
and post-abortion counselling for any women seeking treatment regarding the
medical termination of her pregnancy and, where appropriate, her partner; to
facilitate such counselling such regulations shall provide for a waiting period
of forty-eight hours after the woman has made a request for such medical
termination of pregnancy.

Termination of Pregnancy

5.(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the
treatment for the termination of a pregnancy of not more than eight weeks'
duration by any lawful and appropriate method other than a surgical procedure
may be administered or supervised by a medical practitioner.

(2) It is not
necessary that the treatment referred to in subsection (1), in the case
referred to therein, should be administered in an approved institution and in
any such case it shall not be necessary to establish the matters referred to in
section 6(1).

6.(1) Where a pregnancy sought to be terminated
is of more than eight weeks duration and of not more than twelve weeks duration
or the treatment for the termination of the pregnancy is by any lawful and
appropriate medical preparation, then subject to the provisions of this Act,
the treatment of such a pregnancy may be administered by an authorised medical
practitioner and any assistant acting under such authorised medical
practitioner's directions but such treatment shall be administered only -

(a)in an approved institution approved for that
purpose, having regard to the medical procedure involved and the duration of
the pregnancy; and

(b)where, in the opinion of the authorised medical
practitioner administering or directing the treatment -

(i)the continuance of the pregnancy would involve
risk to the life of the pregnant woman or grave injury to her physical or
mental health;

(ii) there is
substantial risk that if the child were born, it would suffer such physical or
mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped; or

(iii) on account
of being a person of unsound mind, the pregnant woman is not capable of taking
care of an infant;

(c)where the pregnant woman reasonably believes
that her pregnancy was caused by an act of rape or incest and submits a
statement to that effect;

(d)where the pregnant woman is known to be HIV positive;
or

(e)where there is clear evidence that the
pregnancy resulted in spite of the use in good faith of a recognized
contraceptive method by the pregnant woman or her partner:

Provided that the
treatment for the termination of a pregnancy of more than twelve weeks duration
and of not more than sixteen weeks duration may be administered by an
authorised medical practitioner in an approved institution, if two medical
practitioners are of the opinion, formed in good faith, of the matters
specified in paragraphs (b), (c), (d) or (e);

(2) In determining
whether the continuance of a pregnancy would involve risk of grave injury to
the health of a pregnant woman as mentioned in subsection (1)(b)(i), a medical
practitioner or authorised medical practitioner shall take into account the
pregnant woman's entire social and economic environment, whether actual or
foreseeable.

7.The treatment for the termination of a
pregnancy of more than sixteen weeks' duration may be administered by an
authorised medical practitioner in an approved institution, if three medical
practitioners are of the opinion, formed in good faith, that the treatment to
terminate the pregnancy is necessary to save the life of a pregnant woman or to
prevent grave permanent injury to the physical or mental health of the woman or
her unborn child.

8.(1) Except where the pregnant woman is of
unsound mind, a medical practitioner or an authorised medical practitioner, as
the case may be,may require the
written or oral consent of the pregnant woman before administering treatment
for the termination of her pregnancy.

(2) The treatment
for the termination of a pregnancy of a woman of unsound mind of any age shall
not be administered except with the written or oral consent of her guardian.

(3) In the
treatment of the termination of a pregnancy of a child of any age, while the
medical practitioner or authorised medical practitioner, as the case may be,
may encourage the child to inform her parents, he is not required either to
obtain the consent of her parents or guardian or to notify them.

(4) In the
treatment of the termination of a pregnancy of a woman of any marital status,
while the medical practitioner or authorised medical practitioner, as the case
may be, may encourage the patient to inform her partner, he is not required
either to obtain the partner's consent or to notify him.

9.No medical practitioner or authorised medical
practitioner or person authorised by him shall be in any way liable for the
carrying out of, or the supervision of treatment to terminate a pregnancy where
the pregnant woman has consented to such treatment, unless such treatment was
carried out in a negligent manner.

10. The following
sections do not apply where the treatment to terminate the pregnancy is
immediately necessary to save the life of the pregnant woman or to prevent
grave permanent injury to her physical or mental health, namely -

(a)section 4 relating to counselling;

(b)sections 6 and 7 relating to the number of medical
opinions required; and

(c)section 8 relating to consent,

and in such
circumstances any medical practitioner may administer the treatment.

11. (1) Subject to
subsection (4), no person shall be under any legal duty to participate in any
treatment of a patient for the termination of a pregnancy to which he has a
conscientious objection.

(2) In any legal
proceedings the burden of proof of conscientious objection shall lie on the
person claiming such objection.

(3) The burden of
proof referred to in subsection (2) may be discharged by any person by a
statement on oath or affirmation to the effect that he has a conscientious
objection to participate in any treatment authorised by this Act.

(4) Nothing in
subsection (1) shall affect the duty of a person to participate in treatment
for the termination of a pregnancy that is immediately necessary to save the
life of a pregnant woman or to prevent grave permanent injury to her physical
or mental health.

Penalties

12. (1) Where by
or under any provision of this Act any person or any approved institution is
required to maintain any document or record, and such person or institution
deliberately refuses or fails to maintain such document or record, or maintains
such document or record but it is incomplete or contains any statement which is
false or misleading in any material particular, that person or, in the case of
an approved institution, the person owning or managing the institution shall be
liable, on summary conviction, to a fine of twenty thousand dollars and
imprisonment for six months.

(2) Where any
statement made by a pregnant woman under section 6 is intentionally false or
misleading in any material particular, the pregnant woman shall be liable, on
summary conviction, to a fine of seven thousand dollars and imprisonment for
six months.

(3) Where any
medical practitioner, authorised medical practitioner, approved institution or
person employed by, or working in, or any other person with lawful access to
any approved institution contravenes section 14, the medical practitioner, the
person owning or managing the approved institution, or other person shall be
liable, on summary conviction, to a fine of one hundred thousand dollars and
imprisonment for one year.

(4) Any person who
contravenes or refuses or fails to comply with any provision of this Act or the
regulations made thereunder, and for which no penalty has been prescribed by
this Act or the Criminal Law (Offences) Act, shall be liable, on summary conviction,
to a fine of ten thousand dollars and imprisonment for three months.

Miscellaneous

13. Any statement
required to be made by a pregnant woman under this Act, shall, where she is of
unsound mind, be made by her guardian, and any reference in this Act to a
statement by a pregnant woman shall, in such a case, be construed as a
reference to a statement by the guardian of the pregnant woman.

14. (1) A record
of every treatment for the termination of a pregnancy shall be kept at the
premises where the treatment was administered by the medical practitioner,
authorised medical practitioner or person owning or managing an approved
institution, containing the name, the address, the treatment and reasons
therefor and such other relevant particulars as may be prescribed.

(2) Every medical
practitioner, authorised medical practitioner, the person owning or managing an
approved institution or person employed by, or working in, and all other
persons with lawful access to any approved institution -

(a)shall deal with as secret and confidential all
information, documents and matters in respect of any matter dealt with by or
under this Act; and

(b)shall not make use of any such information to
the advantage or benefit of himself or any other person.

(3) Nothing in
subsection (1) shall be deemed to prevent any medical practitioner, authorised
medical practitioner, the person owning or managing an approved institution,
all senior personnel employed therein, or any other person with lawful access
thereto from disclosing, or entitle him to refuse to disclose, to the court or
person referred to in paragraph (b) any information, document or matter
referred to in subsection (1) -

(a)for the purpose of discharging his functions
under this Act, or for the purpose of complying with any provision of this Act;
or

(b)when lawfully required to make the disclosure
by any court, or by any person having authority to do so under any law, for the
purposes of any legal proceedings in respect of the contravention of any provision
of this Act or of the Criminal Law (Offences) Act.

15. (1) The Chief
Medical Officer or any public officer authorised by him in writing may at all
reasonable times enter any premises -

(a)where a medical practitioner administers or
supervises or is reasonably suspected to administer or supervise treatment for
the termination of pregnancy; or

(b)of any approved institution,

for the purpose of
ascertaining whether there has been any contravention of, or failure to comply
with, any provision of this Act or any regulations made thereunder.

(2) Subsection (1)
shall be without prejudice to the powers of a member of the Police Force while
investigating any complaint or information relating to the commission of an
offence.

(3) Nothing in the
exercise of the authority conferred by subsections (1) and (2) shall over-ride
the paramount consideration of the health of the patient[,] and the authority
conferred on officers acting under this section is limited to observation and
evidence-taking and does not include the power to obstruct any procedures
observed.

16. (1) The
Minister may make regulations for carrying out the purposes of this Act.

(2) Without
prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, and in particular, such
regulations may provide for all or any of the following matters -

(a)defining the conditions for the authorisation
of registered medical practitioners as authorised medical practitioners;

(b)defining the conditions which an institution
must satisfy before it is granted approval as an approved institution and the
consequences of a breach of any such conditions;

(c)in respect of the records to be kept by medical
practitioners or other persons of the pregnancies terminated and in respect of
the submission of the records to the Chief Medical Officer, together with other
prescribed information;

(d)in respect of counselling services referred to
in section 4 to be provided to a pregnant woman desirous of having treatment
for the termination of her pregnancy and to a woman who has had such treatment;

(e)regarding the appointment and operation of any
monitoring or advisory body to advise the Minister on securing the effective
operation of this Act;

(f)any form and its contents necessary in the
administration of this Act;

(g)any other matter that is required to be or may
be, prescribed by the Minister.